Legislative Uncertainty Stalls Small Business Hiring In November

Online payroll service provider SurePayroll's monthly Small Business Scorecard shows small business optimism at 53% for the month of November, virtually unchanged from the previous month's score.

Nationwide month-over-month wages and hiring also remained essentially flat in November, although YTD hiring is down 3% and wages are down .5%.

"Small business owners' optimism is holding steady, despite frustrating external twists and turns such as a recurring market rollercoaster and government inaction," said SurePayroll President Michael Alter.

"If small business owners stay the course and optimism continues to rise, expect about a 60 to 90-day window before optimism has the potential to turn into action in the form of hiring decisions or investing in growth."

Concerns about the federal deficit and the pending Supreme Court review of the healthcare reform law (slated for early 2012) may be contributing to small business owners' hesitation to increase hiring and wages.

In the Small Business Scorecard's optimism survey, small business owners – at a ratio of 2:1 – said it would be positive for both hiring and wages if the Supreme Courts declares the healthcare law unconstitutional.

The SurePayroll Scorecard includes hiring and wage data for the top 35 U.S. metropolitan statistical areas and surveys national small business owner optimism each month.

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